Student Mentorship Program

Career Mentor Program

Each third year medical student will be included in a new career mentoring program. This program is designed to enhance mentoring for students as they consider their future career goals. The structure of the program is outlined below.

The Office of Student Affairs will match third year medical students with a faculty mentor in each declared area of interest.

Students will be responsible for contacting each mentor to set up meetings.

The faculty mentors will be available for at least four meetings during your third year. The mentor will be expected to provide a realistic explanation of the specialty and answer any questions. In addition, the mentor should provide you with information regarding residency training in the specialty area (i.e. competitiveness of residency, length of training, fellowship training if necessary, future salary expectations, job market).

Toward the end of your third year, the OSA will contact medical students again and ask what specialty you have decided to pursue. Once declared, you will be paired with a faculty mentor in that one area. In most cases, this relationship will have been started in year three as part of the initial mentor program.

The Career Mentor in year four will be responsible for assisting you through the residency application, interviewing, and ranking process. This includes guiding you toward residencies that match your interest and competitiveness, writing letters of recommendation if requested, providing guidance on interviewing, including conducting mock interviews, and assisting you in the final ranking process.

If you have any questions, please contact George F. Blackall, Psy.D. at gblackall@psu.edu. Thank you.

Careers in Medicine

Careers in Medicine is a career development program that spans all four years of medical school. The program is designed to help medical students with career planning utilizing a well-established decision making process. The basic components of the program include personal assessment, career exploration, specialty decision, and residency selection. The program utilizes a web-based set of exercises and references sponsored by the Association of American Medical Colleges, which allows students to develop a confidential personal career profile. The medical school faculty will supplement this information with presentations, opportunities for clinical experiences, and personal counseling.